Remember the name Fergus Burke. He is is not a big drawcard on the international stage – at least, not yet – but his conundrum of multi-qualification could be central to the future of the game.
Burke is a New Zealander. He was born in Gisborne on the North Island and attended St Paul’s Collegiate in Hamilton before entering the Crusaders academy and studying business at the University of Canterbury. He played for the Crusaders age-group sides before appearing in six games for the national under-20 ‘Baby Blacks’ in 2019.
His progress at senior level has been an uninterrupted march of all red-and-black. He started five matches for the Canterbury NPC representative side before making his Crusaders debut on 14 March 2020 against the Sunwolves. Within three years, he…